


Only Sweeter

by natashabartin



Category: X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Hospital, Alternate Universe - Human, First Meetings, Kissing, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-17
Updated: 2014-09-17
Packaged: 2018-02-17 16:31:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2316152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natashabartin/pseuds/natashabartin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alex has a problem, so a hot nurse has to lube him up and help him out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Only Sweeter

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a cute little thing I wrote because I don't have enough of these two idiots in my life. It's not nearly as smutty as the summary makes it seem, sorry. 
> 
> Thank you to [Chris](http://u-got-my-dick-message.tumblr.com.) for helping me out with this!
> 
> Title shamelessly taken from [Thnks Fr Th Mmrs](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onzL0EM1pKY).

Alex Summers is not an idiot.

This is often debated by his friends, and Erik especially likes to call him variations of the word ‘idiot’. A few of Alex’s favorites are: bumbling imbecil, incompetent dolt, and pusillanimous dullard. They're offensive, but fun, and Alex has to give him points for creativity on the last one (mostly because he’d never heard anybody use the word ‘pusillanimous’ before had to Google it, but Erik’s always been a pretentious prick like that).

He likes to think he’s not too stupid. He is in college, and he does decent, but then again, ‘stupid’ and ‘uneducated’ are two completely different things. It’s not like he can breeze through his work, not even in the slightest, which means hours of sitting in front of textbooks, crying a lot.

Anyway, point is, Alex sometimes does stupid things, which is why people often think of him as a doofus. The most recent of his blunders is hitting a pothole whilst riding Darwin’s scooter, thus launching off of it and hitting the pavement in such a way that he broke his arm. Everybody had laughed, until they figured out he broke his arm, in which case they laughed harder. He has great friends.

So now he’s being kept overnight in the hospital for observation because he also hit his head when he fell. Most of his friends have left, except for Darwin, who is kind of like the worried mother of their small group of friends. He passed out in the uncomfortable chair they leave there for guests, but since Alex wasn’t going to sleep anytime soon anyway, he’d helped his friend over to the hospital bed, despite mumbled protests.

Alex’s bored. And hungry.

He leaves his hospital room and trails down the dimly lit hallway, searching for a vending machine. All he wants right now is a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup. That’s literally all he wants in life, and after he eats it, and maybe has a glass of milk to wash it down, he can die in peace.

Finally, after what feels like an eternity (but was actually just a couple of minutes, at most), the bright light of the vending machine down the hallway to the left appears like a beacon from heaven, sent by Moses himself. He pats the side of the vending machine appreciatively, his eyes scanning the rows of candy, searching for the peanut butter cups.

He actually manages to find them, and it’s the last one in the row. It’s suspiciously good luck, for Alex, so he happily inserts his money, not even complaining about the cost for once in his life. He pushes the buttons and waits, semi-impatiently tapping his bare foot against the cool linoleum floor.

It’s achingly slow, the way that the spring spins around, unhurriedly releasing the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup that he has been waiting so long for. But then, all of a sudden, the spring stops, and Alex’s candy bar is still in there, not dropped to the bottom with that satisfying clunk.

“Bullshit!” he says, hitting the vending machine with his good arm. He tries to keep his voice down, since there are sick people sleeping, but the disappointment is just too overbearing, and his stomach growls when it realizes that it won’t be receiving the perfect ratio of peanut butter to chocolate.

This is when Alex has his next brilliant idea: he needs to get that candy bar. Without even really thinking about it beforehand, he leans down, sticking his good arm up into the slot where he was supposed to have gotten his candy. He paid for that last Reese’s, and he deserves it. If he had enough money, he might have even paid double for that one candy bar, despite the ridiculous prices, but he's pretty much broke.

He shimmies his arm up into the machine, reaching awkwardly for the candy bar that is rightfully his. Just as his fingers begin to graze the bright orange packaging, he tries to grip it and pull his arm out, but--he’s stuck. His arm won’t budge, even as he tries to pull it out again, tugging hard until it physically hurts and he fully realizes that he just can't do it.

How cliche. He got his arm stuck in a fucking vending machine.

He clunks his head against the glass of the machine, sighing heavily. “All I wanted was a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup,” he mumbles to himself as he sits there in an uncomfortable position, still wiggling his fingers to see if he can grip the candy bar that’s so close to his fingertips he can almost taste the peanut buttery, chocolatey goodness in his mouth already.

He stays there for a while, he doesn’t know how long, still trying to get the candy bar despite being unable to move his whole arm, only his fingers, and it crosses his mind again that maybe he is stupid. He should be yelling for help right now, because what's supposed to be his good arm is beginning to ache.

Turns out, he doesn't even have to yell, because just then he hears soft footsteps approaching, and an awkward, "Um.... Are you alright?" once they stop.

Alex looks at whoever, expecting to see a security guard, but instead finding a nurse, standing there in the gross blue scrubs they have to wear and a pair of glasses perched on his nose that look like they need to be replaced soon, considering the tape that's used to attach the left arm to the rest of the frame.

"Dandy," Alex replies sarcastically, and instead of the nurse looking worried, his face turns annoyed at that. Alex figures that's probably not the way to go, so he clears his throat, and starts again. "Uh, sorry. No. I'm stuck." To further emphasize his point, Alex wiggles his arm, wincing when he pulls a bit too hard for his own comfort.

"Don't pull on it anymore," the nurse commands, though it doesn't actually sound like a command, not like other nurses he's met. It sounds more like a friendly suggestion, and Alex feels like groaning, because did he really get the one overly nice nurse in this godforsaken hospital?

The nurse unsurely approaches him further, sliding right up next to him and crouching down. Now that the nurse is closer and has a determined look on, Alex is just realizing how cute this guy is--and how much of an idiot he must look like. Hell, how much of an idiot he is.

"So, um, what's your name?" Alex asks, going for cool even as the nurse cautiously slides his arm up next to Alex's, pausing smartly before the part where Alex's arm got stuck and not wiggling up through there like Alex had. "I'm Alex."

The nurse glances at him, almost surprised, and he gives an awkward little smile. "Henry. Hank, I mean. Hank." He looks down at Alex's other, non-stuck arm, wrapped up in pink tape that Sean thought would be hilarious if he got, but Alex actually likes it. "I would shake your hand, but..." It's quite obviously a joke, considering the smile still on his lips and the light tone of his voice.

Alex gives a little laugh. "Yeah, today's not really my day, huh?"

Hank carefully tugs on Alex's arm, warm hands holding onto this upper arm and trying to get his arm free, already having found the spot where his arm is sandwiched between two pieces of cold metal. "Doesn't seem like it," Hank agrees, distracted, and he frowns. "Can you scoot your arm that way at all?" Hank jabs his thumb to the right, the side that Alex is on.

"I'll try?" Alex answers, doubtful, trying to do what Hank says but ultimately failing. It doesn't turn out to be an all bad thing, though, because Hank leans closer into him when he tries, obviously hoping it would work.

Hank's frown deepens, and he takes his hands away from Alex's arm, but doesn't lean away. "Looks like I'm probably going to have to get some lubricant," he says, looking over to meet Alex's eye, their faces incredibly close. He looks concentrated and serious, but Alex isn't.

"Well, it's not like I'm a virgin," Alex replies, grinning lewdly, "but I appreciate the offer. Very considerate."

It takes Hank a moment to get it, and when he does, he blushes so hard he looks like a tomato. He jerks away, his knee hitting the linoleum hard, and he winces at it. Alex bites his lip to keep from laughing as he watches Hank scramble to his feet, looking flustered. He almost starts to feel bad, until Hank cracks a smile that looks nearly forced. "You're an asshole," he replies, and this time Alex can't help his laugh, and Hank's smile turns genuine.

"I've been told. Can't I get you in trouble with your boss for calling a patient an asshole, though?" Alex asks, quirking an eyebrow, resting his head on the cool class of the vending machine. The scoff that Hank gives makes it pretty obvious that he thinks Alex is being ridiculous, and he probably resembles a child, in his current position.

But right now, he doesn't want to look like child. He wants to look hot, and wants Hank to like him, because Hank is a cute nurse who is easily flustered and Alex is down for that. Even if it's just for ten minutes in a closet, he's so down for that.

"Can't I get you in trouble by telling the police you were trying to steal candy from this vending machine?" he retorts, crossing his arms over his chest. Alex envies the fact he can do that for a moment.

"I was not trying to steal candy," Alex protests, offended by the accusation, even though that's exactly how this looks. Nobody sticks their arms up vending machines unless they're trying to steal from it. "I bought my candy bar, but it got stuck, so." He motions to the lone Reese's that's hanging just above his fingers. "I was starving."

"Didn't you eat dinner?"

"You of all people should know that hospital food tastes like stale bricks," Alex replies, wrinkling his nose in distaste. "My friend ate it all no problem, but even he admitted it was gross." Darwin can literally eat anything, this Alex knows from their childhood spent together. He's eaten sticks, Legos, rotten cafeteria food, and now hospital food. Darwin can literally say he's eaten almost everything that has either no chance or a very low one of killing or seriously harming him.

Hank grins at that. "I pack a lunch everyday."

"Smart and cute," Alex compliments, to which Hank's blush comes back full force, looking down at the floor and mumbling something like 'shut up'. Alex continues on, smiling. "You should go get that lube. I'm quivering in anticipation."

"Don't think I won't throw my shoe at you," Hank warns, even as he begins walking away, probably to go get the lubrication that they need to get Alex's arm out, or maybe to go call the police, or a security guard. Alex doesn't really want the nurse to leave, but his hand is starting to go numb so it's probably a good idea.

He waits there for about ten minutes before Hank is back, and Alex goes to lift his arm to wave, but realizes both of them are sort of out of service currently. So he just smiles, and wiggles his fingers from inside the vending machine best he can. "Took you long enough," he teases, and he doesn't see anything in Hank's hand, which makes him frown.

"I hate to tell you this, Alex," Hank starts, looking solemn, "but we're going to have to amputate."

Alex's eyes go wide, and for just a moment, he actually believes Hank. "What?!" he yells, yanking on his arm because of the shock and then groaning because of the pain.

Hank is laughing, but it's more of a giggle. He actually snorts a couple of times, which actually makes Alex less angry with the dumb joke than he would have been. He's only angry because it surprised him, though. He wouldn't have started yelling or anything, probably just would have cursed at him.

Alex pouts. "Not funny, man," he complains, as Hank pulls a tube of petroleum jelly out of his pocket. "Seriously, this is a stressful situation."

"But I'm being considerate with the lube, though, remember? This," he holds up the jelly, "isn't exactly lube, but it'll do," Hank replies, smiling, and his teeth are really white. Plus, now that he's closer, Alex can even smell the nurse's breathe, which smells like mint. This doesn't click in Alex's head at first, but then he realizes: _holy crap he totally ate some mints before he came back_.

Of course, he could have always eaten mints before he met Alex altogether, but he doubts it would still be so fresh. The scent is still strong despite Hank's warm breath, which means they were eaten very, very recently. It makes Alex giddy, thinking about it, and he so needs to ask for this guy's number once this is all over.

Hank squeezes some of the jelly into his hand, reaching up into the vending machine to lather it onto Alex's arm, doing his best to help it slide between Alex's skin and the metal. Alex probably shouldn't be thinking about how Hank's slick hands would feel on other parts of his body, but, here he is anyway.

His arm's beginning to feel a lot looser, but he doesn't move at all, not until Hank says so. "Alright," Hank says, nodding. "Try it."

It takes a pretty hard tug, and it still hurts, but it actually comes out. "Woo!" Alex cheers, raising his arm triumphantly, and Hank is smiling wide. He brings down his arm to examine it, looking at the red marks in his skin, wiggling his fingers to try and get the pins and needles feeling to go away.

The jelly feels gross on his arm, so he reaches out to wipe his arm on Hank's scrubs. The other man startles at first, but then relaxes, just glaring at Alex as he finishes wiping himself off. "Gross," Hank comments.

"You didn't have it smothered all over your arm, so shush."

They both sit there for a moment more, Alex leaning back against the vending machine, wishing that, after all that, he'd gotten his candy bar, but it's still in there, just hanging there, taunting him. He glares at it from the side, and the little devil stubbornly does nothing despite this (not that Alex believed a glare would change anything).

"That was probably one of the most interesting experiences I've had since I started working here," Hank admits, not noticing that Alex is still mourning the loss of his Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. "I mean, actually, probably ever. I've never seen someone get their arm stuck in a vending machine before."

"You say it like it's impressive," Alex says, looking over at Hank, who is sitting much more rigidly than Alex. He doesn't think it's a sign of discomfort, though, more a sign of excitement. "I don't think that was my brightest achievement--or, at least, I hope it wasn't."

"I think it's impressive that we didn't have to call the fire department," Hank replies, turning to fully face him. Alex knows he looks tired, but Hank looks like he just woke up, so he must work graveyard shift quite a bit. He can't see why, though. He thought graveyard shift was only for people nobody liked, and he thinks Hank is quite likeable.

Hank licks his lips, and Alex glances at them, unintentionally. He doesn't even have to use the whole 'there was movement excuse' on himself because he's not thirteen and he knows he likes Hank. He knows he'd like to kiss Hank, if the other man was okay with that.

"So, um," Alex starts, probably to ask for Hank's number or something, maybe to say something witty and dumb. But he's cut off when _Hank_ kisses _him_.

It's pretty much only a peck, but a kiss nonetheless, and it's over so fast that Alex can't even properly reciprocate. Hank pulls away like he's surprised by himself, and he starts to apologize, but Alex gives a grin and leans into kiss him, earning a surprised noise and a kiss back.

It's pretty obvious that Hank isn't very experienced in kissing. Alex doesn't blame him, though, considering he's a young nurse who works night shift. He probably doesn't get kissed often. His at first awkward demeanor would probably have discouraged a lot of people, but Alex was literally stuck talking to him.

Hank's hands find their place on Alex's chest, and then his waist, while Alex slips his good arm up to mess with the nurse's hair. Maybe breaking his arm wasn't so bad after all, Alex thinks, or getting his arm stuck in the vending machine. It's all led to him kissing a cute male nurse on the floor, so that's pretty cool.

It's Hank who pulls away, despite Alex's noise of protest that sounded way more desperate than he'd ever admit to. "I really need to get back to work," Hank says, looking apologetic, and Alex can tell he doesn't want to go.

Alex keeps his hand in Hank's hair for a second longer, running his fingers through it, before pulling away and sighing. Hank frowns at the loss, and Alex is tempted to kiss him again. "I guess," Alex replies, coating his voice with a childish sadness. "If you have to."

"I don't think I get paid out to make out with patients," Hank says, smiling, "or I'd probably be a lot more eager to get to work at night."

Alex laughs at that, and they both get up, Hank helping Alex. "Maybe we can continue some other time?" Alex suggests, and Hank looks all to happy with the idea, nodding his head excitedly before glancing over at the vending machine again.

He catches sight of the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, and says, "Oh! I completely forgot." Then, much to Alex's surprise, he stands to the side of the machine and tips it forward, with what looks like little effort. It's surprising, because Hank doesn't look all that strong, definitely not strong enough to tip a vending machine forward without dropping it.

Nonetheless, it has the desired effect, and the candy bar makes the clunk that Alex has been waiting to hear. "Awesome!" Alex says as he takes the candy out after Hank sets the vending machine back down. "Thanks, man."

"No problem," Hank replies, looking pleased with how Alex is looking pleased. Out of the same pocket he he had the petroleum jelly in, he digs out a Sharpie, not black, but a dark blue color. "Can I? Sign your cast, I mean." At Alex's nod, he comes closer, scribbling on the cast before pulling back, blushing but not as hard as he had earlier.

Glancing down at his arm, Alex finds Hank McCoy scrawled, with a telephone number beneath that. He grins up at Hank after, feeling almost giddy that he'd actually gotten Hank's number. "I'll call you, then," he says, unable to wipe the grin from his face even if he'd wanted to.

"See you," Hank says, beginning to back away, reluctant to go.

Alex gives a tiny wave with his good hand, and Hank turns around then. Alex watches him go, wondering when the appropriate time would be to call the night shift nurse. Not only how soon, but literally when, because Alex has no idea when he's free and by the the time he realizes this, Hank's already gone, so he resolves to shoot him a text sometime soon.

When he gets back to his hospital room, Darwin is curled up into a ball, still snoring soundly, so Alex sits in the guest chair, getting comfortable as he opens up his Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. He still feels like an idiot, but as least he's an idiot who just got a cute nurse's phone number.

 


End file.
